Feeder with rockable oscillatable discharge element and oscillatable hopper agitating plates



HUGHES 2,520,545 OSCILLATABLE DISCHARGE ELEMENT 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Mia/ Jfizggizai Aug. 29, 1950 FEEDER WITH ROCKABLE AND OSCILLATABLE HOPPER AGITATING PLATES Flled June 15, 1945 Aug. 29, 1950 W. J. HUGHES FEEDER WITH ROCKABLE OSCILLATABLE DISCHARGE EL AND OSCILLATABLE HOPPER AGITATING PLATES Filed June 15, 1945 EMENT 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

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Aug. 29, 1950 w. J. HUGHES 2,520,545

FEEDER wm ROCKABLE OSCILLATABLE DISCHARGE ELEMENT AND OSCILLATABLE HOPPER AGITATING PLATES 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 15, 1945 INVENTOR. WQZZc/JY/ 7265 BY 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 W. HUGHES FEEDER WITH ROCKABLE OSCILLATABLE DISCHARGE ELEMEN AND OSCILLATABLE HOPPER AGITATING PLATES Aug. 29, 1950 Filed June 15, 1945 Patented Aug. 29, 1950 ATEN OFFICE time FEEDER WITH RGGKA'BLE (ISCILLA-TABLE DISGHARGE ELEMENT AND OSCILLAT- ABLE HBBPER AGITATING PLATES Walter; mighes chic go, 111;, assignor' to Infil'co Application June 15; 1945, Serial Not 599,134: glilaims, (pl. 222 -199) is en on r at s is a evi q f di r pulverani mate i ls object of this invention is to provide ani'inproved apparatus for feeding pulverant rnateriali at-predetermined rates. Another object of invention is to provide a feeder capable of feeding predetermined qnaiiti} ties of pulverant material with great'accujracy irrespective of the rate ofieed. A

Another object to provide a dry feeder which can easily and quickly be set at any desired rate over a wid range An important object oi? the inventionis to provide a feeder havin asubstantially linearreedrate adjustment, 1'. e. a rate of read yaryingfdi? rectly with the amplitude qtthe eXtruSiQR-mbtion fia t insai l qina z ro- Another object is to provide in a dry feedermeans for upheaving. of material l hopper by a motion which indepe H V amplitude of" the extrnding, lmotioniari d uniform at all feed rates.

o h r ct e nrsnt 'on w l w m p n f m t were s ti (i nt on wh c r o vwi- D d ijb reve ent te al enera y comprise a bin, orhopper, which holds; the ma,- terial to be fed and which discharges by gravity onto a receiving or supporting. sun face, or tray, which may he a stationary table or plate, or movable, such as a rotating 'dislr or a belt conveyor, and means for discharging measured quantities of material from the trayor' surface.

One h meme generalfy ex eri nced with uch jeedr's, and especially'when feeding; certain materials, such as hydrated lime, is due to t den Q W mat ial is c m a t mthe bin. It is therefore usualto provide some m s t revent qmp t and wh i nl known as Whi I h qrm t nof an arch of compacted material over theioutlet of the bin which prevents uniform gravity flow of material" from the bin. Variousmeans a been P P$ i9? 1 11 purnqs r a sav b n use w ivh w re'in fi ll e e a e etiprqqa i tl h me a 35 1 1 bin Q1 w t in the QH-YQ Y WWW f I? i l 1 0 5 .5 1 9' 3 W 1 a eriel pacting at this" point; These agitators were often combined with some means operating over the receiying tray for pushing measured quantities of" material from the receiving tray or surface. Another proposal has been to intermittently flex the Walls o'f'the material holding hopper. This latter idea has, however, the disadvantage that a flexible hopper must be constructed of relatively' light material, which is not always sufficiently strong to support the weight of the material to be fed.

It has also been suggested that an oscillating scoop" be interposed between the material holding bin and its subjacent discharge surface to up'heave the material in the bin. Such reciprocation ofthe scoop has also been utilized for pilshing measured quantities of material from the receiving surface. However; I have found that there are certain disadvantages in combif ng; the discharge of materialfrom the statio ary surface and the upheaving of material in he bin by such a reciprocal device. One disadyant'age is that when the rate of feed is small the upheall ing motion practically ceases, so that the operation of such feeders tends to become n r s sl in ccurate as the rate of feed decreases.

I propose to correct this inaccuracy by applying two separate and independent movements to the material. One of such movements is effective to upheave the material to be fed, and thusjslecn re its free fiowlwhich movement is continual' and relatively unafi'ected by the rate of feed. The-other movement is effective to push the material from the receiving tray, which latter movement is adjustable to the desired rate of feed; I am thereby enabled to combine substantial upheaving ofmaterial in the bin with extremely accurate feeding even at the lowest practicalratesl I h e also found that I- can secure better resultsanda considerable saving in power by reciprocating and rocking the material receiving tray or pan," rather than an intermediate mater handling scoop. I use a stationary bin,. or hopper, from which material flows by gravity to 12;" sjubj acent tray',. or pan, so mountedfas to reciprocate t verns and simultaneously to rock, or teeter, on a central transverse axis; and I apply to this pan a variable reciprocable movement and, independently of such reciprocation, a rocking or provided only local agitation.

tipping movement. I also provide on the stationary bin simple means which cooperate with the reciprocating tray in the extrusion of material fed thereto, and means for exactly regulating the depth of the ribbon of material pushed from the tray.

When feeding certain materials, such as hydrated lime, a moderate upheaving motion imparted to the material in the hopper is not always sufficient to insure uniform flow of material from hopper to the receiving surface, with consequent inaccuracy of feed. It has therefore been a general experience with feeders utilizing upheaving for bin agitation that the feed of such materials as lime was several per cent less exact than that of less troublesome materials on the same machines. To prevent such inexactness in feeding hydrated lime and the like, I supplement the upheaving of the material, which acts mainly on those portions of the material near the discharge end of the hopper, by agitating the material in the upper portions of the hopper, and I do this in a novel and very effective manner. In the old art it was usual, for this purpose to rotate or reciprocate an agitator through the material, or to vibrate or flex the hopper walls. The former type required considerable power and the latter type In contrast, I shift superposed layers of material laterally and oppositely across the hopper and obtain thereby agitation over a much greater area, and with less power. Briefly the agitating device comprises opposed pairs of oscillating agitator plates mounted at suitable elevations so as to be tiltable through openings in the hopper side walls into and out of he hopper in unison, but in opposite directions, suitable means outside the hopper for moving the plates, and a flexible seal, preventing escape of material from the hopper through the openings.

The various aspects of my invention will be more fully understood by reference to the description and the drawings which form a part of this specification and which show a preferred embodiment of my apparatus. It will be understood that the embodiment shown is for pur-' poses of exemplification only and is not the sole form in which my invention may be applied.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a feeder embodying a preferred form of my invention, with the hopper and agitating assembly removed;

Figure 2 is a side view of my feeder, partly in section, with the hopper and agitating assembly added;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a preferred form of the receiving tray and its associated tray reciprocating and rocking assembly;

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the feeder shown in Figures 1 to 3;

Figure 5 is an end view, partially in section, showing a preferred form of agitating mechanism.

The main parts of the feeder comprise a stationary bin, or hopper 29 adapted to hold a supply of material to be fed, a movable pan, or tray 33 mounted below the bin 20 and receiving material therefrom, and a drive means arranged to reciprocate the tray laterally and simultaneously, and independent of the lateral reciprocation to rock, or teeter, the tray over a central cross shaft. I provide a suitable mechanism for agitating the material in the hopper 20, and

disclosed herein.

The feeder generally will be enclosed in any suitable housing H, as indicated in Figure 2. The hopper 2G, tray 38 and related operating mechanism are mounted on a frame work 13, which comprises a base plate M and upstanding parallel walls I 5. As shown in Figure 1, the base plate [4 has an opening 16 located below the tray 3!], through which material pushed from the tray 30 may drop into any underlying device, such as a mixer, agitator, or the like, not shown.

The hopper 20 has sloping side and end walls 22 and 23, respectively, and an open bottom 2|, as shown in Figures 2 and 4; The lower ends of the side walls 22 are bent from hopper slope to the vertical. The end walls 23 of the hopper 20 are fitted with'slidable gates 24 adapted to be held atv any desired position by any suitable means, such as wing nuts 26, as shown in Figure 4. A dividing plate 25 is attached to the side walls 22 of the hopper 20, preferably midway between the end walls 23, and extends downwardly well below the lower end 2| of the hopper 20. i

Mounted below the hopper 20, in manner to be described below, is the feeding tray, or pan 30. The tray is shown in Figure 3 as having a rectangular flat bottom 3| and vertical sides 32, while the ends 33 of the tray 30 are open. As shown in Figure 2, the tray 30 is of sufficient width to enclose'the lower portion of the hopper 28 between the tray side walls 22 and the'tray side walls 32. Preferably the clearance between the vertical hopper walls 22'and the tray side walls 32 will be small, such as s of an inch. Due to the fact that the lower portions of thehopper side Walls 22 are bent to the vertical, they are parallel to the upbent sides 32 of the tray and clearance is maintained therebetwee'n' throughout all positions of the'tray during its feeding motions. Inthis manner jamming of material between the two parts is avoided.

The tray, or pan, 30 is rigidly mounted in a saddle which is rotatably supported on trunnions 34 carried by supporting links'36. The supporting links as are pivotally supported from the drive shaft dil'which extends through both frame walls 15. Bearings 31; in which the supporting links 35 are carried on the drive shaft, permit rotation of th shaft 48 without impartingmotion to the supporting links ,35 which ride freely on the shaft. The bin 26 and the tray 30 will preferably be mounted relative to each other so that the lower end 2 l' of the bin 20 terminates about one inch above the bottom of the tray. This provides for a smallclearance between the lower edge of'the plate 25 and the tray bottom 3|. 7 p

The drive shaft Ml is supported, as in bearings 4| in the walls iii of the frame [3. It may be connected by acoupling, such as 38, to the 'reducer 43, which in turn is driven by the motor 42 through any suitable connection such as the belt 58. As best shown in Figures 3 and 4, the drive assembly comprises independent mechanisms for laterally reciprocating the tray 30, and also for rocking it; 'Both mechanisms are driven from the drive shaft 40. As'shown in Figures 2 and 5, the mechanism for' agitating material in the bin 2c is likewise driven from the drive shaft 40. I

The mechanism for laterally reciprocating the tray, or'pan, 36 is shown in detail in Figures 3 and 4. It comprises an eccentric 44 mounted toward-one end of the driveshaft and connected by a to a crank. The other end oi the era h 4.6. ri idly affixed to a, crank sheet.

41 which may be. supported; n. suitable hearin s h n. the. walls. t5.- ot the. frame 11.. Also. rigidly mohnthd on the crank shaft. 4.]. as. by ahulo 5.4. is a ba as... The has 59. is provided with a. slot.

50 whi h is urves; to. toxin the segment. of a.

hele with a mom. equal to. the. distance. inom he @23 hi! he. tn hhinhs: 3.4. to. the axis .ofthe. haft. L A i rhesi link serves. as. a

ehh efe hez rod h tw .nth trunnions; and. an sha n nm 5.2 is mo ahle along. the slot. o the. be: 4.9. may he set at; any desired mile. or timi he. tray" .0: s; pihh d. to. ah. intenmeh. eo neo in rod. or. link. e hl' sham-5.2m may: heioumaied in. uita le. here. has 6.6; ke ed to. he crank shaft 62 is a tipper crank A tipp en link. $4 is p nned. o he t me: orahk 53.: and alsoisconh et d to h tr rz iflh .table means. sue s a e s. 5 hi h; is men on the; nderside e; t ay '1 htwalcq towers: one. end. of. he. r y.

The agitating mechanism is shown; Figures 2 and 5. A pair of shafts, 13 and 13a, one ateaqjh d of t h hheh. ioiilzhaled. msuiiahle. hear- 3 h as. th se 1.4... endwells o he hhhh on on. ach. shaft. 3 n 3 respec ivel s: a. pain of; arms; %,re ee ive .y l ehw. 1.5. .carm one were; one plates 11 and 8 n two T :,.Q. ;1.' .l. ..0 l Q.1?Bnd wall; of t h pheh. unpor andiowen aging o tin p ate hand. 1 41;. Upper and. lower p ning 8. .3 ahd.8.0@,..m..anepromdedin. oppo n a s of. he-homer. z. open: 8 81. hh rfi la ails-of; ashaneeo m snonm ing to that of the plates 11, 18, Ha and 18a,;and re i h y ereeie than.there peotive.n1ates;.. AS how n ur e o enin s... 80,. BI hii 0 14.8.1 reshee. ve y, me ted-hi1 thei de. f th he er qhsc a e. esealih dev oei ftsu tah em uch. as a diehhham which. may be. me when walls.

e tiel web. a hst eld. .33- a y uitable.

s. h wn! he. eu ei shi hefh r Ble- P fe eh ..e....e a sh w. n h eurezi. h owenopem as 1L ahd 8M and the plate nd- 8a ooperehhat eremth. .be-somewhah maller han he. when open ngs inland flfl aen h h er pla s. T an ."w

iqg the shafts to eg ce e miee htrie 1km mehhe it. b rod H;- to, a bell cr a Th ethe hh h 1. nked. o.- the d ive. she 12 d thehellhl mk 2; A-er nk 6i he he done. by eqnhee o. .4.1 p o. t

oi; .erahh 6-1. keyed.

nted on. the.

The hnerationaoi anphmtus; will: :eadihr understood; fiu-lverant. material to he; is in. tnoduced into the bin... 20; from. the. ten am flaws: therefrom continuously by: gmvity thmughthe open bottom 21. onto the. tray-3.0 and will; be: sum

' and reducer 4.3:, the connectin nod. or link-1.4.5: Willi procate. thecnank Afi bank. forth. through. n. angle Whiohis determined. hy the throw of the eccen ric. 44-. The crank: shaft. 41: will be: unmade yerank: 4.6 andnwilkzrecipmcatethe slotted; ha:

49; through he same; angle: through which the; crank. 4.6.. moves. As; thebar. 419 mqvesfback andi forth. he forked 1ink1'5l moizes the tray; orpan; 39, laterally back and? forth. The. extent of. this: movement depends on the positioning of theimm 2: in the. 510E592. It. will be... obvious. thatiwhen he P111152 is. seta-t thetop; and: oh theslotpwhioh is" he. center of the rfiQipl'QGatiQn' of; the. loan 4a,. her will Dena m icement; of the they... while.-

helre willhe maxim mmwementwhenitissetiah the. l wermost. end of the Slut. Intermediate sate imes. of. the pin. along. the slot; will; give proper? iohal. moi m nts oi. the; tray zero; tomaxfv, mum

As the: tray 3H; thus moiprocates. elow-the 8., mat rial. suppoztedz on. the tray .30.: backs. up gainst the stationa yadividine-plate; 25 whichexe ehdsdown to diaoentthe h ttom ohthe. tray 3112. his: h ahe divi s; the. ribbon of: material: on: the? am nto; wo. par s; and. with each stroke. at. the; r y ma rial from ne. or; the. other side: or the p ate. mish dr o er the corresnonding= open. end 33 oi. the. they 3.9- Eheoua-ntity oimateriai thus sh d. th tray s. dixeotly; hmmrtional to r; th amplitude; of motion imparted: to he: tray" nd th depthof material; the: tray ltwilh be: bv u hat: harate of feed. cam. therefonei. be. readily r g late f m: zero t maximnmuieed. .b mover sehtinaof han; hhinithes otiin... he d l. B5. is. IJIFQQQ lX alihmheri the pointer.- 5.6. will. indicate the feed.- mates; at: vaitioua hosi iohsz of; the pin.

Wh le. the Q t hto w mhi fih hl from the haw 3th e exae y. heeulatedw 'hvoner .settiha hthe. ates 2mm he. p 5.2; f r a when op rati ..d' oh1s; t: a so; nehessa h ewdez o QQ l i HQHW- o z ew oimate ia e tray. Thi ifi hheh... maohiev d: h he eeh h roh hhhihemehoh h. is ima wand hig-his supp In at" el lllf in w ich. isfimnoyted' to. the 1 mat ma e loin: by a itating; h a

a g: provi es a oohhnuposfinee how oh man t the 1o .er.-.-nor i hoft h n henethe .l w hl' 1e hhhehsly uhllhhv -ilby the a i he re to-mzayide {on 'bin-t he hey: .meahs swfl hhihs. means. L 1l ..Henfl-eh 1z ;that? oreeat he vemental ho mover tipper shaft 62 through a fixed angle, and thereby reciprocates the tipper crank 63 keyed to shaft 62. Thus, when the eccentric 44 is rotated bythe drive shaft 40, and reciprocates connecting rod 45, the tipper crank 83 reciprocates the tipper link 64 vertically, thereby rocking the tray 30. This rocking of the tray is independent of the lateral reciprocation of the tray, i. e. it continues also when the reciprocating movement is stopped by setting the pin 52 at zero position. Upheaving and free flow of material continue therefore also with very low feed rates. This is an important improvement over feeders wherein feeding and upheaving are caused by one movement only. In such apparatus the upheaving motion ceases When the feed rate becomes very low and the feed is therefore inexact at low rates.

The rocking motion is of fixed minimum amplitude which is a functional value of the radii of cranks 63 and BI and the vertical amplitude of the movement of the pin connection between the rods 68 and 45. Preferably, the radii of cranks B3 and. GI will be so proportioned as to give only a relatively small tipping movement to the tray 30.

The two motions, horizontal reciprocation and vertical tipping, are imparted to the tray 30 timedat 90 apart. Therefore the tray reaches a substantially level position at each limit of its reciprocation. As the end of the tray at the outer limit of its travel begins to retract inwardly, it'is lifted by the tipping mechanism. oppositely, the other end of the tray, which simultaneously begins to move outwardly, is tipped down. This tipping down enhances refilling of the outwardly moving portion of the tray, while the upward tipping of the retracting end enhances the extrusion of the material on the tipped up side of the tray by a slight compression against the material in the bin and backed against the plate 25.

The'hopper agitating mechanism which supplements the upheaving caused by the rocking motion of the tray, or pan, 30 with a positive lateral'shifting of material in the bin 20 operates as follows: As the drive shaft 411 is rotated by the motor 42 and reducer 43 the eccentric will reciprocate the rod H vertically. The bell crank 12 willthereby me moved through an angle which depends on the throw of the eccentric Ill. The shaft 13 reciprocates the rocker arms 15 to oscillate the plates l'! and 18 back and forth in such manner, that as the upper plate I1 is tilted forwardly into the hopper its connected lower plate 18 is tilted backwardly out of the hopper, and vice'versa. Simultaneously, the shaft 1311, which is connected to the bell crank-12 by the link 85 and crank 86 reciprocates the rocker arms 15a to oscillate the plates 11a and 18a forwardly into and rearwardly out of the hopper. The connections are such that the plates Ila and 18a will be oscillated simultaneously with, but in reverse sequence relative to, the plates TI and 18, so that the upper plates move in unison in one direction and simultaneously the lower plates will move in unison in the opposite direction. As the upper and lower plates move in opposite directions they exert pressure on superposed horizontal layers of material and shift the entire layers laterally, but in opposite directions. The simultaneously occurring opposed movements allow for such shifting without waste of power or danger to the hopper. This lateral shifting of the material in opposed layers is a very effective means for breaking up any tendency to compacting and arching and provides agitation over a very large area. The sealing flap or curtain 82 yields readily to the inward or outward push of the plates and provides a very simple and effective seal for theopenings 80, 8|, a and Ma, so that material will not escape therethrough.

With some materials the shifting or agitating mechanism canbe dispensed with. My feeder lends itself especially well to such cases where materials of different qualities are fed by the same feeder at different times of the year. Due to the fact that the agitating mechanism is independent of the reciprocating and rocking mechanism it is posible, by providing simple means 'for disconnecting the eccentric 16 from the drive shaft 40, to operate the feeder without the agitating mechanism, when feeding materials which do not require supplementary agitation. When returning to the feed 01 more troublesome materials the agitating mechanism will be returned to operative position and will provide the necessary agitation to insure exact feed.

It will be seen that I provide a feeder which will readily feed all types of pulverant materials with extreme accuracy through all feed rates from zero to maximum and which is easily adjustable to any desired rate of feed and to feed of any type of material.

It will be obvious that many changes could be made in the structure of the feeder without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly I do not limit myself to the precise form of the preferred embodiment shown and described herein.

I claim:

1. A feeder for pulverant material comprising a stationary bin having an open bottom, a tray mounted below said open bottom, rocking means connected to said tray and adapted to cause a continual rocking movement of said tray, reciprocating means connected to said tray and adapted to cause a horizontal reciprocation of said tray, a plate mounted in said bin transversely of the direction of reciprocation of said tray across said open bottom and extending downwardly to adjacent said tray, and a prime mover connected to said rocking means and to said reciprocating means.

2. A feeder for pulverant material comprising a stationary bin having an open bottom, a tray pivotally mounted below said open bottom, rocking means connected to said tray and adapted to cause a continual rocking movement of said tray, reciprocating means connected to said tray and adapted to cause a reciprocating movement of said tray, means to vary the length of said reciprocating movement of said tray, a plate mounted in said bin transversely of the direction of reciprocation of said tray across said open bottom and extending downwardly to adjacent said tray, and a prime mover connected to said rocking means and to said reciprocating means.

3. In a feeder for pulverant material including a stationary hopper having an outlet at its lower end, a tray mounted below said hopper for longitudinal reciprocation, and a plate mounted across said outlet transversely of the direction of reciprocation of said tray and extending downwardly to adjacent said tray, openings in opposed walls of said hopper, agitating plates so mounted on each of said walls as to oscillate through said openings, eccentric means connected to said agitating plates and adapted to oscillate said plates simultaneously through said openings, flexible seals for said'opening's, a second 9 eccentric means, linkage c'onnectingsa-id second eccentric means -to the bottom of said tray, a bar curved to form the segment of a circle around the pivotal center of said tray, a rod connected to said pivotal center at on end and movably connected at its other end to said curved bar, means for positioning the end of said rod on said bar, a shaft supporting the upper end of said curved bar, linkage connecting said shaft to said second eccentric means, a connection between said first and second mentioned linkage, a tipper crank cennected to said tray and tc said second eccentric, and a prime mover connected to both said eccentric means.

4. In a feeder for pulverant material including a stationary rigid hopper, a reciprocable receiving tray, means to reciprocate said tray, a plate mounted across said hopper and adjacent said tray transversely of the direction of reciprocation of said tray, and means for varying the length of stroke of said reciprocating means, rocking means connected to said tray and adapted to impart thereto a continual rocking movement independently of the length of stroke of the reciprocating means and to continually upheave material in the lower portion of said hop-' per, means adapted to provide free flow of material to said lower portion of said hopper, said means including openings in two opposite walls of said hopper, movable plates mounted for oscillation through said openings, oscillating means connected to said. plates, and flexible seals for said openings, and a prime mover connected to said reciprocating means, said rocking means and said oscillating means for moving the same.

5. A feeder for pulverant material comprising a stationary material holding bin having an outlet at its lower end, a material receiving tray pivotally mounted below said outlet, means for upheaving material in said bin including eccentric means connected to said tray and adapted to impart thereto a continual rocking movement, means for continuously removing material from said tray comprising reciprocating means connected to said eccentric means and to said tray and adapted to impart longitudinal reciprocating movement to said tray, and a plate mounted across said outlet transversely of said longitudinal movement and extending downwardly to adjacent said tray, means for regulating the quantity of material removed from said tray comprising means for varying the length of stroke of said reciprocating means, and a prime mover connected to said eccentric means.

6. A feeder for pulverant material comprising a stationary bin having side walls and an outlet through its bottom, a tray, supporting links pivotally holding said tray below said outlet, a drive shaft, an eccentric means on said drive shaft, means for transmitting a variable reciprocating movement to said tray upon rotation of said drive shaft comprising a crank, a link connecting one end of said crank to said eccentric means, a crank shaft rigidly affixed to the other end of said crank, a curved bar affixed to said crank shaft, said bar having a peripheral slot longitudially therethrough being coaxial with the pivotal center of said tray, a link connected with one end to said tray at said pivotal center and movable with the other end along said slot, and means for positioning said link in said slot; means for transmitting a continual rocking movement to said tray upon rotation of said drive shaft including a tipper crank, a linkage connecting said eccentric means with said tipper 10 crank and a second linkage connecting said tipper crank to the bottom of said tray, a plate mounted across said outlet transversely of the reciprocating movement of, and extending downwardly to adjacent, said tray, and a prime mover con- :nected to said drive shaft,

7. In a feeder for pulverant material including a stationary and rig-id material holding bin having an outlet at its lower end, a material receiving tray pivotally mounted below said outlet, a prime mover, a drive shaft connected to said prime mover, mean operable to provide a continuous free flow of material to said tray, said means comprising rocking means connected to said drive shaft and to said tray and adapted to impart a continual rocking movement to said tray and to upheave material in said bin upon rotation of said drive shaft, and mean operable to laterally shift superposed layers of material in said bin in opposite directions and comprising openings in the walls of said bin, agitating plates mounted on said bin for oscillation through said openings, and linkage connecting said agitating plates to said drive shaft and adapted to oscillate said plates laterally in unison upon rotation of said drive shaft, means for continuously pushing material alternately from one or the other end of said tray comprising reciprocating means connected to said drive shaft and to said tray in such manner as to impart longitudinal reciprocating movement to said tray upon rotation of said drive shaft, and a dividing plate mounted across said outlet transversely of said reciprocating movement and extending downwardly to adjacent said tray, and means for regulating the quantity of material pushed from said tray comprising a member for varying the effective vertical distance between said outlet and said tray and means for varying the length of stroke of said reciprocating means.

8. In combination with a bin for holding pulverant material, a device for agitating the material comprising an upper and a lower opening in each of two opposed walls of said bin, sealing curtains for said openings, said curtains being fixed with their upper edges to said walls and hanging freely down therefrom to an elevation substantially below said lower openings, a shaft mounted on each of said walls, an upper and a lower plate rigidly mounted on each shaft, said plate corresponding in shape to, and being of such size as to clear, said openings, an eccentric, a prime mover connected to said eccentric, and a linkage connecting said shafts to said eccentric in such manner that upon rotation of said eccentric by said prime mover the upper plates are oscillated in unison laterally in one direction and the lower plates are oscillated simultaneously in unison in the opposite direction.

9. The apparatus of claim 6 comprising also an upper and a lower opening in two opposed side walls of said bin, sealing curtains for said openings, said curtains being fastened with their upper edges to said walls and hanging freely down therefrom to an elevation substantially below said lower openings, an agitator shaft mounted on each of said Walls, an upper and a lower plate rigidly mounted on each shaft, said plates corresponding in shape to, and being of such size as to clear, said opening, and linkage connecting said agitator shafts to said drive shaft in such manner that upon rotation of said drive shaft by said prime mover the upper plates are oscillated in unison laterally in one direction and the lower 11 12 7 plates are oscillated simultaneously 'in unison in Number Name Date 7 the opposite direction. 1,551,810 Drawer Sept. 1, 1925 WALTER J. HUGHES. 1,783,423 Harper Dec. 12, 1930 1,868,404 Ziegler July 19, 1932 R R N CITED 5 2,116,105 Eaton May 3, 1938 The following references are of record in the 2153,03) m 41 1939 file of this patent: 1 g f 5 2 o y c UNITED STATES PATENTS" 2,321,965 Zimmerman June 15, 1943 Number Name Date 0 2,338,882 Todd Jan. 11, 1944 189,917 Boss Apr. 24, 1877 2,366,075 Wegandt Dec. 26, 1944 1,179,858 Menier Apr. 18, 1916 2,364,601 Colvin Dec. 12, 1944 1,456,353 Bare May 22, 1 3 2,381,802 Booth et al Aug. 7, 1945 1,548,385 Prescott Aug. 4, 1925 Certificate of Correction Patent No. 2,520,545 August 29, 1950 WALTER J HUGHES It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows:

Column 7, line 1, for the Word mover read moves; line 49, for me read be; column 10, lines 12 and 18, for mean read means; line 71, for openlng read opemngs;

and that the said Letters Patent should be read as corrected above, so that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oifice.

Signed and sealed this 12th day of December, A. D. 1950.

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant Commissioner of Patents. 

